Examples of Recent SDGs

EXAMPLES OF RECENT COURSES

T.S. Eliot

T.S. Eliot is, by common
consent, the most significant English language poet of the 20th century.
His work ranges from easily accessible poems (includingThe Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock) and
verse plays (includingMurder in the
Cathedral) to poems worthy of intensive study and discussion
(includingThe Waste Land and Four
Quartets) to essays dealing with religion, literature and current issues.
He deals with many of the contemporary issues, including tradition vs.
modernity, religion vs. humanism, the use of “poetic” language vs. colloquial
speech, and the abstract vs. the more concrete. Despite the seriousness
of these issues, his works are full of humor, jazz rhythms and clever uses of
language. He set modern poetry on a new course.

Creating Modern American Life:
1870 – 1920

Following the Civil War and
Reconstruction, America entered a new age. Technological and industrial
revolutions changed how and where Americans lived; large numbers of immigrants
changed the American population and culture. It was the age of Robber
Barons and Progressives, of Imperialists and Nativists, of Suffragettes and
Prohibitionists; of strike breakers and Anarchists; of Jim Crow and the “New
South.”Some embraced change and
some fought it. But from all the turmoil and disagreements about
America’s future, a new America – modern America -- emerged by 1920. The
changes wrought in this period were as great, if not greater, than those in any
other period of American history.

The Web of Life

Recent science has developed a
new understanding of the biology of life that encompasses more of its vital
integrative actions, complexity, and processes of self-organization and
self-generation. This discussion group aims to put these new discoveries into a
single coherent context and understand how they impact the biologic, physical,
psychological, and even the social and cultural aspects of our lives. Come and
explore and get entangled in The Web of Life.

Income Inequality: Capital in the
Twenty-First Century

Upward mobility is more myth
than reality, whereas downward mobility and vulnerability is a widely shared
experience. Those at the bottom are only a short step away from bankruptcy with
all that it entails - illness, divorce or loss of job often is enough to push
them over the brink. Income inequality is one of today’s most widely discussed
and controversial issues. But what do we really know about its evolution over
the long term? Do the dynamics of private capital accumulation inevitably lead
to the concentration of wealth in ever fewer hands, as Karl Marx believed in
the nineteenth century? Or do the balancing forces of growth, competition, and
technological progress lead in later stages of development to reduced
inequality? We will use two books “Capital in the Twenty-First Century” by
Thomas Piketty and “The Price of Inequality” by Joseph Stiglitz to understand
income inequality.

The Open Empire: China Before
1600

The Chinese have been writing
history almost from the beginning of Chinese civilization about 4,000 years
ago. The history has been invariably viewed through the artificial
chronological boundaries of dynastic cycle that exaggerates the importance of
the emperor and minimizes the contribution of other social groups. Stunning
evidence from recent archeological finds has caused historians to rethink the
past, resulting in a view of China before 1600 as an empire that incorporated
different regions and peoples as it was taking shape and that remained open to
outside influence. We will follow other trends in Chinese history that had a
far greater impact on daily life, such as the introduction of Buddhism, the
exchange of ideas and technology along the Silk Road, the evolving role of
women, the changing views of the afterlife among ordinary people, and the
Mongol conquest.

Tchaikovsky: His Life and Music

Tchaikovsky wrote music that
could break your heart. He also wrote finely crafted symphonies, concerti,
concert pieces, and gorgeous ballets, some of the most beloved music in the
world. His life story was the stuff of Russian tragedy. His music often has the
distinctive feel of folk tunes and songs, and always the power and passion of
his country. In this discussion group, we will return to late 19th century
Russia to see how Tchaikovsky, together with his contemporaries, led Russia out
of its music backwardness to an international audience. We will listen to his
pieces and bring selected excerpts to class to enjoy and discuss. Tchaikovsky
was the first Russian composer to attend a music conservatory and be trained in
the European [German] composition style. He was the first to be widely known in
Europe and America. Today in the 21st century, Tchaikovsky’s music is esteemed
and critically acclaimed for its wide stylistic and emotional range.

Postwar: History of Europe Since
1945

At the end of World War II,
Europe lay in ruins. Today, Europe is enjoying a level of peace and prosperity
un- imaginable in 1945. In this discussion group, we will focus on
the recovery and growth of Western and Eastern Europe after World War II.
We will explore the hard decisions about ways to avoid any return to the
dictatorships, violence, and wars of the earlier Europe. We will see how a
“European model” emerged slowly and painfully, while ushering in decades of peace
and prosperity. We conclude with assessment of current economic, political, and
social difficulties and prospects for the future.

Genetic Engineering

Genetic engineering, including
gene manipulation, gene cloning, recombinant DNA technology and gene modification,
has radically altered the study of diseases, the development of disease
resistant plants, forensic analysis, and the production of drugs, to name a few
applications. It has brought about entirely new phenomena – the cloning of
organisms, as well as the creation of new genes and even new life forms.

This SDG looks at the ethical
and legal dilemmas and potential dangers that are growing out of current
research in this field, as we explore the contributions by academic and
corporate scientists.

Movies and the Moral Adventure of
Life

Through the purposeful or
unintentional development of each film we will study, we will explore our own
moral boundaries, reflecting on the meaning of life, love, beauty, sexuality,
violence, faith, religion and custom, good and evil, nuclear holocaust, and
terrorism to name a few of the subjects. While doing so, we will also examine
the individuals (writers, actors, producers and directors) and the film
productions that raised these questions. The movies have been selected and
reviewed by Alan Stone, a noted film critic and author, who wrote our source
bookMovies and the Moral Adventure of
Life. We will watch each of the films selected, read the core source book
reviews and bring to the weekly discussions of the films our own perceptions
and insights forged by our own lives and experiences. The result should be a
lively thought provoking discussion that just may affect the way we confirm,
revise or refine how we perceive certain aspects of the moral adventure of
life.